Stocks to Monitor: Ambuja Cements, Bajaj Auto, Infosys, Tata Comms., Angel One

Indian stock markets are expected to open on a cautious note today due to the uncertainty surrounding the timing of US rate cuts and the precarious situation in the Middle East (Iran-Israel) region. As Gift Nifty futures were quoting around 22,148 levels as of 07:30 am, there is a possibility of a gap-down open. However, the market sentiment may be guided by stock-specific actions as major companies such as Infosys and Bajaj Auto are set to report their Q4 earnings.

Ambuja Cements: The Adani group announced on Wednesday that they had invested Rs 8,339 crore into their cement subsidiary, Ambuja Cements, by fully subscribing to its warrants program. As a result, the Adani family has increased their stake by an additional 3.6 percent to approximately 70.3 percent, bringing the total amount infused by them into the company to Rs 20,000 crore. This recent capital injection follows a Rs 5,000 crore investment made on October 18, 2022, and a Rs 6,661 crore investment on March 28, 2024, which was for partial share issuance. The company stated that this latest funding will help the group in achieving its target capacity of 140 million tonnes per annum by 2028 in the cement business.

Bajaj Auto: Bajaj Auto is expected to report strong earnings for the quarter ending March 2024, thanks to an increase in sales volume, better realizations, and a higher average selling price. The company will announce its Q4 results on April 18. It is estimated that Bajaj Auto's sales volume in Q4FY24 will increase by 24.6 percent to 10,68,576 units, up from 857,788 units in the same period last year. According to the average estimates of five brokerages, the company is expected to report a net profit of Rs 1,805 crore in Q4, which is a 26 percent increase from Rs 1,432.9 crore in the same quarter last year. The company's revenue for the quarter ending March 2024 is also expected to rise by almost 26 percent to Rs 11,200 crore, up from Rs 8,904.7 crore in the corresponding quarter of the previous year.

Infosys: Infosys is expected to release its Q4FY24 financial results on April 18. Due to weak discretionary spending, it is anticipated that Infosys will report subdued figures for Q4FY24. Although the company is likely to experience a sequential drop in revenue, the EBIT margin is expected to remain stable due to weak growth. As per the average estimates of seven brokerages, Infosys is predicted to report a net profit of Rs 6,142 crore in Q4FY24, which marks a modest growth of 0.58 percent from the Rs 6,106 crore reported in the December quarter. In terms of Q4 revenue in USD, Infosys is expected to see a 0.38 percent decline to $4,645 million from $4,663 million on a QoQ basis. In rupee terms, revenue is projected to decrease 0.59 percent to Rs 38,590 crore from Rs 38,821 crore sequentially. On the operational front, Infosys' Earnings before Interest and Taxes (EBIT) for the quarter ending March 2024 is expected to decrease 0.69 percent to Rs 7,906 crore from Rs 7,961 crore in the December quarter.

Tata Communications: Tata Communications Limited announced a 1.5 percent decrease in its consolidated net profit on April 17. The net profit for the quarter ending March 31, 2024 was Rs 321.2 crore, compared to Rs 326 crore net profit reported in Q4FY23. However, the company's operational revenue saw a significant increase of 24.6 percent, rising to Rs 5,691.7 crore from Rs 4,568.7 crore in Q4FY23. Tata Communications' EBITDA rose by 2.1 percent to Rs 1,056.3 crore. While the EBIT margin decreased from 22.6 percent to 18.6 percent. The company's board has proposed a final dividend of Rs 16.70 per share for FY24. They have also re-appointed A.S. Lakshminarayanan as the Managing Director and CEO of the company for a second term. This term will commence from November 26, 2024, and will continue until April 13, 2026, pending shareholder approval.

Angel One: Fintech company Angel One has announced an increase in net profit of 27.3 percent YoY for the fourth quarter ending March 31, 2024. The net profit reached Rs 340 crore, compared to Rs 267 crore in the same quarter last year. The company's operational revenue also increased by 64.3 percent to Rs 1,357.2 crore, compared to Rs 826 crore in the corresponding period of the previous fiscal year. On the operational front, EBITDA (Earnings Before Interest, Tax, Depreciation, and Amortisation) rose by 37.2 percent to Rs 529.7 crore in Q4FY24, up from Rs 386 crore in the same period last year. The EBITDA margin for the reported quarter was 39 percent, compared to 46.7 percent in the corresponding period of the previous fiscal year.

Brigade Enterprises: A real estate developer based in Bengaluru has reported a 46 percent year-on-year increase in its sales bookings, reaching a record-breaking Rs 6,013 crore in FY24. The growth was driven by strong demand for its housing projects. The company's presales in the fourth quarter of FY24 amounted to Rs 2,243 crore, marking the highest ever for a quarter. In FY24, the company recorded real estate sales volumes of 7.55 million square feet and 2.72 million square feet in Q4FY24. The average realisation for FY24 saw an annual increase of 23 percent. As per a regulatory filing, Brigade Enterprises reported collections across the group for FY24 at Rs 5,915 crore, compared to Rs 5,424 crore for FY23.

ICICI Lombard General Insurance: Non-life insurer ICICI Lombard reported on Wednesday, April 17, that its net profit for Q4FY24 had increased by 19 percent YoY to Rs 520 crore, compared to a net profit of Rs 437 crore in Q4FY23. The company's gross direct premium income (GDPI) for FY24 was Rs 24,776 crore, marking a 17.8 percent growth from Rs 21,025 crore in FY23. This growth rate surpassed the industry's growth rate of 12.8 percent. If we exclude crop and mass health, the company's GDPI growth was 17.1 percent, which was also higher than the industry's growth rate of 14.8 percent in FY24. In Q4FY24, the company's GDPI was Rs 6,073 crore, a 22 percent increase from Rs 4,977 crore in Q4FY23. The company's board of directors has proposed a final dividend of Rs 6 per share for FY24, pending approval from shareholders at the upcoming annual general meeting. If approved, the total dividend for FY24 will be Rs 11 per share.

Aditya Birla Capital: The Aditya Birla Group has recently launched a new app, which was developed at a cost of Rs 100 crore. The main objective of this app is to double their customer base in the next three years and keep up with the expected growth of India's financial services industry. During the launch event, Kumar Mangalam Birla, the group's chairman, expressed his confidence in Aditya Birla Capital, the conglomerate's financial services business. The company aims to increase its current customer base of 35 million by an additional 30 million over the next three years. Birla predicts a compounded annual growth rate (CAGR) of 19-21 percent in the credit, investments, and insurance sectors of the financial services industry over the next three to five years. The app, called ABCD Aditya Birla Capital, is managed by Aditya Birla Capital Digital Ltd, a subsidiary of Aditya Birla Capital Ltd, established in March 2023.

Vodafone Idea: The company is planning to raise Rs 45,000 crore through equity and debt to fulfill its various requirements. However, it is currently focusing on settling the amount owed to its vendors, which amounts to Rs 10,000 crore, including payments to tower and network equipment providers. The company's total debt burden stands at Rs 2.1 trillion, which includes Rs 1.3 trillion for spectrum and another Rs 65,000 crore as part of a revenue-sharing mechanism owed to the government. The debt is scheduled to be repaid over a period that extends up to 2040-41, with the moratorium on spectrum payments coming to an end in the first half of FY26. "The initial plan is to settle the vendor dues over time," stated Akshaya Moondra, the managing director and chief executive, during a conversation with Mint. Vodafone Idea generates approximately Rs 8,500 crore in cash annually, and its bank debt had decreased to Rs 4,500 crore by the end of February, providing it with the necessary leeway to clear vendor dues, according to Moondra.

Zee Entertainment Enterprises: The Managing Director and CEO of Zee Entertainment Enterprises Ltd, Punit Goenka, has proposed a new organizational structure that has been approved by the Board of Directors. The new structure aims to capitalize on synergies among the main business segments, which include broadcast, digital, movies, and music. As part of the new structure, Goenka will now directly oversee the domestic broadcast business. Chairman of ZEE, R. Gopalan, stated that they are confident that this lean team under the leadership of Punit will enable the company to achieve its future goals and priorities, thereby generating higher value for the shareholders.